Kim Ratliff
Associate Professor, MEd Counseling Program, School of Education
As a clinical assistant professor in the M.Ed. counseling program, I teach graduate counseling courses and supervise school and mental health counseling interns. I am a Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), National Board Certified Counselor and School Counselor (NCC, NCSC) who specializes in counseling children and adolescents, person-centered, narrative and solution-focused therapies. During my counseling career, I received several awards, including the Virginia Counselor of the Year Award and have a history of serving in leadership and appointed committee positions for professional counseling organizations, such as Chi Sigma Iota, Virginia Counselors Association, Virginia School Counselor Association and the American Counseling Association. After three decades living the military life and living a majority of my time on the East Coast, I now call the South Sound my home and embrace the motto, “Live like the mountain is out”. Committed to modeling mental health wellness, I find tidepooling, distance running/walking, mandala rock painting, and hiking to be my favorite forms of self-care.
Counseling Experience
Middle School Counselor
Potomac Middle School
Prince William County Schools, Virginia
2006-2010
Supervised experience in mental health counseling
Prince William County, Virginia
2007-2010
Disaster Mental Health Counseling (volunteer)
American Red Cross, deployed to Florida after Hurricane Wilma
2005
Elementary School Counselor
Penn Elementary, Marshall Elementary, Dale City Elementary, & West Gate Elementary
Prince William County Schools, Virginia
2004-2006
Elementary School Counselor
Howard Hall Elementary, Baldwin Elementary
Cumberland County Schools, North Carolina
1998-2004
Counselor Education Experience
University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, WA
Clinical Assistant Professor 2020-present
Adjunct Instructor 2019-2020
American Public University System, Charles Town, WV
Program Director/Professor 2017-2020
Program Director/Associate Professor 2011-2017
Instructor 2010-2011
City University of Seattle, Vancouver, WA
Part-time Associate Faculty 2018-2020
George Mason University, VA
Adjunct Instructor 2009
Research Interests
My primary research focus is multiracial identity development and cultural competence when counseling multiracial individuals. For over a decade, I have presented my research at state, regional, and national conferences, including invited presentations. Additional research interests include suicide prevention and mental health wellness of college students and helping professionals. I developed an annual Suicide Prevention and Awareness Symposium, providing psychoeducation to students, staff, and faculty at an online institution and contributed to the Active Minds and Association of College and University Educators (ACUE) publication “Creating a Culture of Caring: Practical Approaches for College and University Faculty to Support Student Wellbeing and Mental Health” (PDF). Ongoing qualitative research projects associated with school counseling experiences with distance counseling during the pandemic and identity development of counselor educators during the latest sociopolitical and global health crisis events are in progress.
Select Publications/Presentations
Ratliff, K. M. (2019, March). Counseling Multiracial Populations: Strengths and Challenges. New Orleans, LA: American Counseling Association Conference.
Ratliff, K. M. (2019). Building rapport and creating a sense of community: Are relationships important in the online classroom? Internet Learning Journal, 7(1), 31-48.
Ratliff, K. M. (2018). How children of police officers can benefit from counseling. Rebuilding Officer Resiliency: A Treatment Guide, 1, 43-45.
Ratliff, K. M. (2018, November). Transforming the Online Counselor Education Classroom Experience. Santa Rosa, CA: Western Association for Counselor Education and Supervision.
Ratliff, K.M. (2018, September). Suicide Prevention Awareness. Active Minds of American Public University System Suicide Prevention Symposium.
Ratliff, K. M. (2018, September). Mental Health Wellness: Self-Care Activities. Active Minds of American Public University System Suicide Prevention Symposium.
Ratliff, K. M. (2017, October). What Are You? Counseling Multiracial Students, Portland, OR: Oregon School Counselor Association Conference.
Ratliff, K. M., & Burton, L. (2017, March). Using evidence-based teaching strategies to transform the online school counselor education classroom. San Diego, CA: National Evidence-Based School Counseling Conference.